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DL man sentenced to prison for burglary, having drugs

A Detroit Lakes man was convicted and sentenced Tuesday in Becker County District Court on charges of second degree burglary and drug possession.

Brian Michael Sellers, 30, of 817 Summit Ave., Detroit Lakes, was sentenced to 26 months in prison on the burglary charge, and 24 months in prison on the drug charge, with both sentences to be served concurrently. He was given credit for 118 days previously served. Sellers must also pay a total of $1,520 in court fines and fees.

Additional charges including aggravated forgery, possession of a counterfeit check, possession of marijuana in a motor vehicle and possession of drug paraphernalia were dismissed at sentencing.

The burglary charge was related to a May 23 break-in at Lake Country Towing in Detroit Lakes.

On May 22, an employee of the business reported that several vehicles located there had been broken into, and numerous CDs and radios removed.

A camera trap was then set up by the investigating officer outside a storage shed/trailer on the property, and early the following morning, the deputy went back to the business and found the tool shed door open, two bags lying open on the floor inside and numerous tools lying next to the bag as well as outside the shed on the ground.

A representative of the towing company noted that a duffel bag and a bolt cutter found inside the shed did not belong to him or the business; the deputy discovered that entry to the shed had been gained by cutting through a perimeter fence and a bolt lock on the shed door.

Photos downloaded from the trap camera showed two suspects who were subsequently identified as Sellers and Jareth James Kroger, 24, also of Detroit Lakes. One of the photos allegedly showed Sellers carrying items from the shed.

On May 24, a police officer on patrol in Detroit Lakes observed Sellers walking across some vacant lots on Summit Avenue and Minnesota Avenue in Detroit Lakes, and approached him, knowing that Sellers was wanted on several arrest warrants.

Sellers allegedly saw the officer, said "I'm not talking to you," and fled on foot. During the ensuing pursuit, he reportedly threw something away and it broke. After Sellers was apprehended and arrested, the officer went back to where he had seen the defendant throwing away something, and found a broken glass pipe.

The pieces were sent to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for analysis, and the results later came back positive for the presence of methamphetamine in the sample.

Also on May 24, when Sellers was brought to the jail on the drug charges, officers found four bank items in his possession that were in another's name. The items included a money order check for $100 and three savings withdrawal slips dated between April 18 and 30, for a total of $625; the owner of those slips said that he had not withdrawn the money nor had he given permission for anyone else to do so. All four of the items had been reported stolen on April 18.